Niko Yamamoto
Niko Yamamoto '''(born '''Ship) is a genetically modified Galvanic Mechamorph and a member of the Plumbers' Helpers. Originally a Mechamorph symbiote created by Baz-El, he was adopted by Julie Yamamoto, Ben Tennyson's former girlfriend. In the mid-2020s, Ship's longtime proximity to Julie led him to develop synthetic copies of her DNA in his own system, which eventually led to him developing into her "son," Niko. Biography Niko was born Ship, a synthetic Galvanic Mechamorph symbiote produced by Baz-El in order to retrieve help from the Plumbers when his ship crashed on Earth. Ship was subsequently adopted by Julie Yamamoto, Ben's girlfriend at the time, who treated him as a beloved pet. Over the years, Ship participated in many battles alongside the Tennysons, and even played a role in the Twilight War. After a battle left him badly injured, however, Julie refused to allow him to fight anymore. In the mid-2020s, Ship, still recovering from his injury during the war, began to develop artificial DNA to repair his damaged system. Due to his longtime proximity to Julie, this DNA ended up being a simulated replica of hers. Over time, this led to Ship developing into a humanlike form. By the time he had repaired the damage to his system, Ship had become an almost perfect genetic clone of Julie, with minor variations accounting for his difference in sex and physical appearance. At this point, Ship had no memory of his previous life, and for all intents and purposes had been reborn. Julie chose to take him in as her own son, whom she named Niko. At the time, only Julie, Gwen Tennyson, and Kelly Glenn were aware of Niko's true identity. Growing up, Niko was friends with Max Glenn, and was one of the only rerumas Max knew in person. Niko eventually ended up joining the Plumbers' Helpers, in spite of his mother's reservations. Appearance Niko is an eleven-year-old boy with beige skin, mid-length black hair, and green eyes. He is often seen wearing an elaborate, neo-retro train engineer outfit with goggles, a gray cap, green kerchief, white shirt, black overalls, and black boots. When Niko activates his Galvanic Mechamorph powers, his skin turns jet-black, and green, electronic lines appear on his face, arms, and clothing. His eyes, eyelashes, and mouth also turn bright green. In this form, Niko can shape-shift into a variety of different forms, with his clothes altering or dissolving to accommodate. Personality Niko is fun-loving, inventive, and somewhat hyperactive, and is always looking for ways to entertain himself. He tends to be very outgoing, adventurous, and determined, though he can be somewhat absent-minded at times as well, often wandering off on his own elaborate misadventures that result from minor distractions. He loves expanding upon and exploring his superhuman abilities, and enjoys showing off his often incredible new powers to his friends and family. He cares a lot about the Plumbers' Helpers and wants to prove he can be a real hero and fight by their side. Niko is an avid video gamer, and like Max and Ben Tennyson before them, he loves the Sumo Slammers series. Relationships Julie Yamamoto As Ship, Niko was very close to Julie and cared for and protected her at all costs, something like a loyal pet. When he developed into a human form, Julie came to treat Niko has her own son (which, biologically speaking, he essentially was). Niko is very close to Julie and loves her dearly, but sometimes feels suffocated by her over-protective and sometimes overbearing personality. He often wants to spend more time at Plumber HQ with the Helpers to avoid feeling controlled by Julie back at home. In spite of this, Niko cares a lot for his mother and takes her advice whenever he can. Max Glenn Niko was one of the first rerumas Max ever met, and the two have known each other since they were both relatively little. Niko looks up to Max as something of an older brother figure as a result, and often seeks his approval or makes significant efforts to impress him and prove that he can be a hero. The two get along well and have a number of shared interests, enjoying the same video games and TV shows, and even holding similar opinions about their favorite franchises (such as their shared belief that classic Sumo Slammers ''was better than its modern incarnations). They often play together, and Max treats Niko like a little brother, which is why he is sometimes reluctant to send him into combat situations. Ben Tennyson Though Niko never knew Ben in his memory, as Ship, he was very close to Ben, and often participated in missions with him. Ship was often a subject of contention in the complicated relationship between Ben and Julie. In spite of their disagreements with one another, Julie cared for Ben and regarded him as being just as important a parental figure to Ship as she was. After Ship became Niko, Julie continued to tell him that his father was a Plumber who died during the Twilight War. Rather than being a lie or cover-story, Julie was simply referring to Ben. After Niko learns the truth of his origins, he comes to regard Ben Tennyson as his father. Behind the Scenes Niko is one of the oldest original characters in ''Rerumas ''and has undergone many changes. His personality and origin story have remained mostly the same: he is the evolution of Ship from ''Ben 10: Alien Force and developed artificial human DNA due to his longtime proximity to Julie. Niko was originally named Yuichi, and was later renamed to Pierre, and then again to Louis. His current name, Niko, comes from Nikola Tesla, a famous Serbian-American engineer and inventor. Trivia * Niko's powers are extremely similar to those of Rex Salazar from Generator Rex, another series created by the ''Ben 10 ''creators Man of Action. Gallery Niko 2.png Nikoart2.png Nikoart.png Rerumas_2_-_Copy_(2).png Category:Characters Category:Plumbers' Helpers Category:Tennyson family Category:Rerumas